Unbelievable...we're finally back, after a long hiatus! I just needed some time to get my business in check and clear some of the other projects off my plate before returning to Eternia [and Etheria later]. But yeah...expect to see further chapters in this saga in the coming weeks and whatnot.

In the meantime, enjoy this epic re-do!

Episode 2:

LOST AND FOUND

VOICE CAST:

Laura Bailey as Teela
Tiffany Smith as Andra
Mae Whitman as Ileena
Lena Headey as Evil-Lyn/Nadira
Nolan North as Trap-Jaw
Paul Dobson as Tri-Klops
Brian Drummond as Stinkor
April Winchell as Scorpia
Susan Eisenberg as Sorceress
Dwayne Hill as Whiplash
Kevin M. Richardson as Cringer
Cree Summer as Priestess
Travis Willingham as He-Man (flashback)

After the great tragedy that had befallen Eternia, months had passed for the grief and sorrow to settle in.

Since that time, nobody had heard from Evil-Lyn, Beast Man, or any of the Evil Warriors. With Skeletor gone, none of them saw much reason to stick around or continue working together.

The death of Eternia's hero and its greatest threat had ushered in a state of calm. And yet, despite the calm, there were some who at least resorted to some petty theft.

That was what Teela was investigating now. Since she'd imposed a self-exile from Eternos, she had taken under her wing a new friend called Andra. Although she was adamant on not taking on any new partners, deep inside she wanted to ensure Andra at least had a fighting chance to survive in this world. So both of them had taken on a career of being bounty hunters in search of missing artifacts.

Teela had changed her look as well. While her hair was still the same style, she wore more rugged-looking armor…but in order to ensure that nobody recognized her, she had dyed her hair blonde.

Anywho, both of them were currently searching around inside a disheveled, ramshackle old house.

Teela was turning over an old empty box, seeing if there were any marks left on it.

Andra wheezed underneath her mask. "Gugh...something stinks in here, and it's not the garbage...!" she coughed. "And this thing's got a filter!"

"I've smelled worse," replied Teela. "Keep digging 'till we get what we came for."

Andra dug through the old junk until she pulled forth a small jewelry box. Opening it, she found a gauntlet within. "One, two, show me the goods!" she exclaimed. "Ey, boss, I found it!"

Just then, something shot out of the pile, and landed in front of them. It was a large, bipedal skunk-like creature wearing patched-together armor.

"KEEP YOUR MITTS OFF MY GIFT!" he bellowed angrily. This…was Stinkor, the self-proclaimed "evil master of odors". He and the Masters had squared off on a few previous occasions—and yet, it seemed nobody had taken him seriously.

Quickly, Teela raced towards him. Andra struggled before she used her feet to push off, taking the gauntlet with her as she fell back into Teela's arms.

"GET OUTTA MY HOUSE!" bellowed Stinkor, before he inhaled and let out a massive belch of ghoulish green gas.

"I knew I recognized that stink somewhere!" said Teela as she gently put Andra down.

Andra did a double-take. "You know this guy?" she asked.

"Let's just say, we've tangled before," Teela responded. "It was before I met ya."

"I hadda work real hard and snag that stinkin' glove thing," Stinkor snarled. "And ain't NOBODY takin' it from me!"

"Sorry to burst your bubble, but there are a few people who need that glove more than you do!" the blonde warrior woman replied as she got ready to fight.

"I told you, nobody's taking my gift!" Stinkor snarled as he took in a bigger breath.

"Boss, use your staff!" Andra told Teela.

Stinkor then exhaled, letting out another beastly breath. The blonde-dyed woman picked up her staff, extended it, and spun it in the air, whirling away the ghoulish garlic gas wind.

"...this isn't going to end well…" Stinkor remarked.

SECONDS LATER…

Teela whacked him with the staff, sending him flying out of the house. Seconds later, he crashed on top of a random civillian's cart.

Andra took the gauntlet back, while Teela threw the owner of the cart a small bag of gold. "Sorry about the mess," she replied.

"Oh, man..." Stinkor groaned. "The missus is gonna be so disappointed..."

"Whoof, that was close!" exclaimed Andra, peeling off her mask.

"Well, when it comes to Stinkor, close is usually too close," replied Teela. "Unless you can hold your breath. Some things never change, I guess."

"Huh...okay," Andra blinked. "You know, we've been working together for two months, Boss, and you haven't said anything about your old life to me. What DID you do before we met?"

Teela's face grew uneasy. "...let's just say I failed an important job, and I wanted to start over…" she replied.

One look at her told Andra that for the moment, this was the only bit of information she'd be getting for a while.

LATER, AT THE TEMPLE...

"I cannot thank you enough for returning the Glove of Globolah," the priestess said as she placed the gauntlet back on its pedestal. "This glove is steeped in the oldest magic, so it was thought to be theft-proof. Thank you for getting it back. Without it, our followers felt empty and broken."

"No problem," replied Andra. "When we get a job, we get it done!"

"One would think he wanted to sell it to the highest bidder," the Priestess muttered. "Magical relics are at a premium since magic has abandoned Eternia."

Teela rubbed her chin. "I have noticed that…" she commented.

"Well, in any case, we're happy to help!" Andra said.

"And your aid is appreciated," the priestess responded as she left. Teela looked back, feeling almost guilty.

"Very impressive," said a voice from nearby, making the two of them jump in shock as they looked over to the source of the voice.

Standing nearby was a young woman with blonde hair, and casual purple clothing.

"Just a young woman," she replied. "But you may call me Nadira."

Andra gave a polite wave. Teela said, "Er, thanks..."

"So, can we help you?" asked Andra.

"Help me? No, help comes free," clarified Nadira. "I'm here to PAY you for a job."

Teela crossed her arms. "What's the job?" she inquired.

"You helped the temple get back what was stolen," explained Nadira. "Maybe you could do the same for me from a place that might be...a bit of a challenge."

She took out a bag of rare gemstones and tossed them to Teela, who caught them.

Andra and Teela looked at the gems, wide-eyed, before the former quickly asked. "What's the job?"

"I need you to retrieve an old goblet," explained Nadira. "Not magical, just sentimental. It used to belong to a former associate. I can't bring him back, so I'd be willing to pay any price to have even a small memento of him again."

Teela and Andra glanced at one another. It seemed like a straightforward mission.

"Fine," Teela said. "Where do we steal this cup back from?"

Nadira's brow furrowed. "...Snake Mountain," she replied.

Andra's brows raised. "Wait, you mean THE Snake Mountain?!" she asked. "As in, Skeletor's old lair?!"

"Consider it done," Teela responded.

"Hey, boss? Are you sure this is a good idea?" Andra asked, growing visibly nervous.

"Relax, Andra," said Teela. "Without that old bag of bones around, who'd be there to greet us?"

"...I would be careful if I were you, girls," Nadira responded as they walked off. "Snake Mountain can be such a fearsome place, even without Skeletor around."

FLASHBACK: MANY MOONS AGO...

Back in the days of Skeletor, Teela was climbing up the side of Snake Mountain after she'd fallen down a net at the bottom of a trap door. It was a bit difficult, especially since there wasn't much to grab onto.

Drawing her hands back from the wall, she winced at the burns on them before shaking them a few times.

Turning to her left, Teela saw a dangling green tail hanging over the edge of the pit.

Looks like help might've come along, she thought as she clambered up. As she reached the top, she found that said tail belonged to the lethal lizard called Whiplash, who was sound asleep at the time.

Not to mention, she found He-Man waiting for her. "What took you?" he asked.

"A trap-door," Teela responded. "You know how old bone-face is about them."

He-Man chuckled as he helped her up. "I knew you'd make it!" he commended.

"If you're done having fun, let's finish this," Teela said.

"I'm game if you are," He-Man winked, before they both heard Whiplash waking up. "I dunno how you got here, but I know how you're gonna be leavin'!" he snarled.

"Don't bet on it, Whiplash!" called He-Man, as the Caligar attacked—right before Teela knocked him off his feet with a sweep-kick, and He-Man decked him in the face a few times.

"Grrr…now you're gonna get it!" Whiplash snarled as he wound up his tail and got ready to slam it.

But the duo was more than prepared; He-Man grabbed Teela by the right arm and swung her around, letting her kick Whiplash into the pit.

"He sure got a kick outta that," Teela smirked as she landed on her feet.

"Nice one!" He-Man chuckled.

With that done, they stood before the wolf-headed gate.

"So, ready to finish this, old friend?" He-Man inquired.

Teela smiled back. "Wherever you go, I go," she responded.

END OF FLASHBACK.

Teela stared at the newly refurbished Wolf Head Gate; it now had a laser grid in place of its metallic door.

Andra joined her shortly after. "Looks like security's been upped," she noticed.

Teela went over and checked, seeing there was now a sort of keypad next to the entrance.

"Huh...looks like some kinda pressure sensor," noted Andra as she checked out the area. "We touch it wrong, and it goes off."

"Alright, we need a plan, or else we're screwed," mused Teela.

"Hang on...what about that trapdoor you mentioned?" Andra asked.

"We'll call that 'Plan A'," replied Teela. "If it's been sealed up, we need to figure out a plan B."

"Fine," Andra said as she went to inspect the systems of the electronic doorway. She mumbled to herself as she looked over the systems, trying to find a weakness in the security.

"Okay, yeah, this thing is airtight," said Andra.

"If you think we can't get in this way, then odds are that they think we can't get in this way," Teela responded.

Andra raised a brow. "That's real deep, boss," she replied. "You get that off a fortune cookie or somethin'?"

"It's...something that I picked up from my father when I was younger," Teela replied as she got out her staff. "Besides, if they think we can't get in, it'll be the only entrance they're not watching."

Andra shrugged. "Okay. So what's our go-to plan to get in, oh fearless leader?" she asked.

Teela felt around the floor and pulled out a loose panel, revealing the old trapdoor underneath. The lava pit the net had hung over had long since solidified into hard, cool stone.

"If we can't go through..." she said as she activated the shovel attachment on her staff. "...then we'll dig under."

Andra chuckled. "I like the way you think, boss!" she remarked.

A HALF-HOUR LATER…

Teela and Andra climbed out through a large panel that they'd managed to get behind while digging into the mountain.

"How much longer?" grunted Andra.

"Not much," Teela replied as she pulled her out. "We made it."

Looking around the hallways, they saw that the innards of Snake Mountain were no longer a series of tunnels and caverns, but an industrial, mechanical-looking hallway.

"OK, this looks a lot different from last time," Teela commented.

"I guess the new tenants did some remodeling," Andra replied. Suddenly, she pulled Teela behind some barrels. Nearby, a stranger clad in a purple robe walked past and approached a computer screen.

As Andra leaned over to get a closer look, she accidentally banged against one of the barrels. This sudden sound prompted the man to turn, revealing that half of his face was consumed by cybernetics, and his left eye was now a red light!

Both women quickly ducked behind some large barrels while the individual scanned the area. Fortunately, more cloak-wearing individuals walked past in single file. The cyborg man pulled his cloak back up, and joined the line as they walked off.

Once the opportunity arose, the two heroines quickly knocked out two cultists—Teela, by putting one in a sleeper hold, and Andra by electrocuting the other. When the cultists were dealt with, the two claimed their robes and joined the line.

"Hopefully we get through this in one piece," whispered Andra.

"Looks like we'll have to wait and see," Teela replied.

As they filed into a dark purple chamber, they heard a voice talking over a loudspeaker.

"Magic and those who crave it have wrought havoc upon Eternia for FAR too long!"

Looking around, they saw a newly-cyborgized Whiplash. Now he had a shiny new ball attachment on the end of his tail, which grew spikes.

"Neighbor turns against neighbor, and father fights against son because flesh is weak...but NOT the machine!" the voice declared.

At the front of the area were a father, a little girl, and behind them was Trap-Jaw, clad in a tunic.

"Take heart, weary pilgrims," he said. "Your suffering shall end soon. ...sorry if that sounded ominous, it wasn't meant to."

"Motherboard is FOREVER strong!" said a voice as the speaker filled a shiny chalice with metallic liquid, and as he emerged from behind the curtains, it was clear that this was none other than Tri-Klops, dressed in ceremonial robes! "Forever merciful! So drink from the chalice, and save yourself AND your family from carnal chaos!"

Teela raised a brow in recognition as Tri-Klops started chanting. "Glory be unto we who live and diode, in the mighty Motherboard!" he bellowed.

"Glory be unto we! Glory evermore to the Motherboard!" chanted the other acolytes.

"...what IS this freak show?" Andra asked under her breath.

Tri-Klops held the chalice out to the man.

"Thank you, Holy One," the man said. "We have made the long pilgrimage in hope of finding the new way; a better way."

"You have come to salvation," replied Tri-Klops as the chalice was accepted. "We make your mediocre flesh ready for the digital embrace of Motherboard!"

As the man drank from the goblet, he returned it...and suddenly fell to the ground screaming! Black markings covered his arm, and metallic pipes emerged from within his back.

Andra watched in horror as the markings covered the man's face, and his right eye became cybernetic! The man's left arm changed from flesh to metal, and his hand became a circular saw!

"Let us pray...o sweet Motherboard, made of metal..." began Tri-Klops as Andra backed off, nauseated and mortified.

Teela clutched her friend's hand to steady her. "Flesh or steel, we make it through and get what we came for," she instructed. "I'll be the distraction, while you go for the cup."

Andra gave a shaky nod; she wanted to get what they came for as soon as humanly possible, so they could leave this house of horrors.

They split up as Tri-Klops finished his bizarre prayer. "...in the name of Robotics, Automation, and the Holy Sprocket!" he exclaimed.

"Trap-Jaw and Tri-Klops," Teela announced as the acolytes stood aside, while the individual in question removed her pilfered robe. "Never thought I'd see you working together!"

"Teela...I see you've been trying something different," commented Tri-Klops.

"How DARE you sully the sanctity of Snake Mountain!" snapped Trap-Jaw.

"Oh, I sullied it?" Teela scoffed while Andra snuck around. "I don't even recognize the place anymore, with all your techno-junk scattered around here."

"The defeat of that imbecile Skeletor was an eye-opener," scowled Tri-Klops. "Every plan he ever tried was another link in a seemingly endless chain of failures. He relied on magic, and look where it got him! Now, the magic is gone...and we are giving these people a new way! A reliable way! The only worthwhile power in Eternia is TECHNOLOGY!"

"Sounds like you have a few loose screws," snorted Teela as she swung her arms. "I'll gladly knock them back into place."

Tri-Klops pointed at Teela. "Obliterate her!" he snapped, and the acolytes all ran towards her, getting ready to fight.

Teela grabbed an attacker and flung him over her shoulder, then leapt and kicked another in the head. She then took her staff and smacked a third.

As he watched, the cyborg man got to his feet and attacked, shifting his hand into a circular saw once more.

Seeing this, Teela let out a yelp as she quickly lunged to the side in order to avoid the circular saw as it nearly cleaved her in two. As she did, she nearly got smashed by Whiplash's tail.

"Whiplash...deja vu," she commented.

"I dunno what that means, but you're gonna get it good this time!" Whiplash sneered, as he wound up to smash Teela's head in.

She quickly barrel-rolled out of the way, narrowly avoiding getting smashed into pulp.

As she righted herself, she overheard a yell and a strangled gasp. Turning around, she saw Andra being clutched by her neck, held by the mechanical tendrils of the little girl.

"B-boss...!" she wheezed.

Teela's green eyes widened in horror. "ANDRA!" she screamed, as she was suddenly grabbed by a large robot; he had a blue face, red eyes, a black helm on most of his head, a yellow chest, chrome arms and legs, with green wrists, hands and boots. This was the Blast-Attak robot warrior, with the ability to self-destruct, and pull himself back together.

At this point, it seemed like things were looking bleak for the duo.

Suddenly, the roof broke open, and in came Stinkor, accompanied by a tall, buff woman; she had short white hair, claws instead of hands, and a big red stinger tail.

"Hope you don't mind..." Stinkor grunted. "But I brought company."

"What the—?!" exclaimed Tri-Klops.

"Stinkor?!" bellowed Trap-Jaw.

"Yep!" Stinkor responded. "Nice to know I haven't been forgotten!"

"Come on! Let's pinch these two do-badders!" said Scorpia as she snapped her pincers.

"Right, hon!" Stinkor nodded.

"Who's the broad?" asked Trap Jaw.

"HEY!" the white-haired woman spat. "The name is SCORPIA, and you look like you could use a sock in the mouth!"

Trap-Jaw laughed. "Oh, yeah? You and what—URK!" He was cut off by getting stung with her tail, which made him freeze up and fall over.

"Who says I need an army?" asked Scorpia.

Stinkor, meanwhile, leapt at the cyborg-girl and used his badger-esque claws to slice through the cables, causing her to release Andra from her grip.

Blast-Attak tossed Teela to the side, and charged at Stinkor, ready to attack. The skunk-like creature inhaled, and let out a massive expulsion of his garlic gas, which burnt a few circuits in Blast-Attak's systems.

Meanwhile, as Andra rejoined the fight, she had to fend off the other cyborg, before he turned his arm into a circular saw and started trying to slice her in half.

Luckily, the saw-hand was clipped off at the wrist, courtesy of Scorpia's claws. "You needed a hand..." she told Andra. "...but hopefully a claw will do!"

"A little unexpected, but thanks!" the younger girl said.

"No problem," Scorpia nodded. "Just watch your back!"

Andra nodded as she picked up the discarded robot arm. "...this could work nicely," she smiled to herself.

"Yeah, good luck with that," sneered Trap-Jaw as he approached her. "You'll need more than a fancy arm to tangle with ME!"

Andra cracked her neck. "Alright, big-mouth…let's dance!" she declared.

Trap-Jaw sneered as he popped off his claw-arm and replaced it with a laser cannon. "Certainly," he replied. "But I dance ROUGH!"

Taking aim, he fired off a laser blast, and Andra rolled to the side before the spot she was in got fried to a cinder.

"...okay, that was too close," she muttered. The current mission was to keep ahead and stay in one piece. And that, of course, was difficult since "Old Iron-Lip" was relentless in his pursuit.

"I was never too good with moving targets," he remarked. "But I've had plenty of time to practice!"

Activating his targeting system, Trap-Jaw readied his laser cannon once more.

Before he could fire, Andra was suddenly shot from behind by Tri-Klops' optic blast, which knocked her to the ground.

"Hey! I had her!" Trap-Jaw shouted.

"I just made it a little easier, is all," Tri-Klops shrugged.

While Andra struggled to regain her bearings, she saw Trap-Jaw approaching, switching out his blaster for his claw attachment.

Glancing around in a panic, she grabbed the robotic arm and shoved it right into his mouth...and he started eating most of it!

CHOMP! CHOMP!

As Trap-Jaw kept on chomping down, Andra spotted some loose wires at the end of the arm, and she connected them.

Suddenly, the saw attachment emerged from the arm and—

KLANG!

It practically bounced off Trap-Jaw's head, barely even phasing him. Opening his hinged jaw once again, the metal-mouthed monster leaned over and bit the saw attachment like it was a chocolate chip cookie.

CHOMP!
CHOMP!
CHOMP!

Andra glanced down at the now empty attachment and swallowed hard. "This could be a problem…" she noted.

"What can I say?" Trap-Jaw asked. "I fight with bite!"

"Hehehe…I see that," the younger heroine said with a nervous smile before running in the opposite direction.

The murderous cyborg began to chew on the sharp metal, molding it into different shapes and fragments.

"No need to leave so soon! Why don't ya stick around?" he said as he spat out the bits of sharp metal, pinning Andra to the wall by her robe.

As Andra struggled, something occurred to her.

"Oh, wait! This is what, twice my size?" she chuckled. "What was I freaking out over?"

And she effortlessly slipped out of the robe, ducked between Tri-Klops' legs, and snatched the cup.

"BAM! And Andra snags the cup, and with it, the championship!" she exclaimed as she headed for the exit. "Boss! I got the chalice! Let's take off!"

"Great job, Andra!" Teela said as she kicked one of the cultists in the face. "Let's take off! This party's gettin a little rowdy for my taste!"

As Andra jumped off Whiplash's head… "Comin' in high!"

…she leapt and caught Teela by the hand… "Catchin' you low!"

…and the blonde swung her around in a semicircle… "Swing you around…"

…bringing her back towards Blast-Attak and knocking him towards Whiplash. "And away we go!"

Blast-Attak's systems began beeping rapidly, and before he could disable it, a shuriken shot forth and struck him in the chest.

"A little parting gift!" Andra called before she left. "Arrivaderci!"

As the beeps grew louder, Blast-Attak suddenly exploded, blowing himself to pieces, and being left lying in a crumpled heap.

Tri-Klops coughed as he got to his feet. "AFTER THEM!" he bellowed. From within the statues, Tri-Klops' spy drones, the Doom Seekers**, were dispatched and they came after the unexpected quartet.

As they continued their chase, they headed into a hallway which cut off at a platform.

"Alright…up and out?" asked Andra.

Teela glanced over and saw some more hooded cultists coming towards them from another end of the cavern.

"Down," she said as Andra and the others came over to her.

"I hope you know what you're doing!" Andra said.

"And I hope your rope can hold more than two people!" Stinkor said as the group hung onto Teela.

The blonde warrior, and her companions, leapt off the ledge as she pointed her staff upward and fired a grappling hook, which wrapped around a pipe and lowered them all down to the ground.

After retracting her grappling hook, Teela put her staff back and glanced out at the exit, which was flanked by a pair of slime pits.

"Guys?" asked Scorpia. "That was invigorating and all, but we've got more of those robed weirdos coming!"

If one listened in, they could definitely hear the shouts of the approaching cultists, rushing for the interlopers who had dared to intrude.

"Just to make sure they don't follow us..." Andra said as she threw another shuriken into the pit. As it exploded, a bevy of tentacles shot forth and began swinging wildly at the acolytes.

As they escaped, Tri-Klops watched them leave, and squinted ominously.

SHORTLY, OUTSIDE THE TEMPLE…

"We tripled our income AND foiled a pair of mecha-lomaniacs!" Andra exclaimed. "If that's what your old life was like, I dunno HOW you could've quit!"

Teela gave an uneasy look. "Yeah, well…there's a lot of things I'd rather leave behind…" she responded.

"Oh, that much is certain," commented Nadira from nearby, startling Teela and Andra.

"Agh!" Andra yelped.

"What are you doing here?" inquired Teela.

"Just figured I'd come and see how you two were doing," Nadira responded. "And I see you've done well...not to mention you've made some new friends...colleagues...whatever they are."

Scorpia smiled and waved as Stinkor gave a small, uneasy wave.

Teela turned over the chalice, and Nadira put it into her satchel.

"And now, our reward," Teela insisted.

Nadira rolled her eyes and turned over a small bag of gemstones. "There's your pay," she said. "But...would you be interested in doubling it?"

Teela raised an eyebrow in disbelief.

"So what constitutes doubling the money?" inquired Andra.

"Why, delivering it, of course," explained Nadira.

"Deliver it to where?" asked Andra.

"Does the name 'Grayskull' ring any bells?" inquired Nadira.

Andra's jaw fell open. "Grayskull? As in, the CASTLE?!" she asked. "My grandfather told me stories about that place!"

"Tell me, Captain; have you never once wondered what you left behind?" Nadira queried.

Teela felt her breath hitch as she looked down, trying to comprehend what Nadira meant. She had left everything behind after the death of Adam and Skeletor. What could she possibly single out at this moment?

"So, how about it?" Nadira inquired. "Help me get the goblet to the castle, and I'll pay you twice as much."

Andra glanced over at Teela. "...you sure you wanna do this, boss?" she asked. "I get that this is probably kinda rough to go back to."

Teela thought for a moment before delivering her response. "...we'll take the job," she responded.

SOME TIME LATER…

Teela and Andra stood outside the former Castle Grayskull.

"After the final battle, the king declared the castle a forbidden zone," Teela explained. "Put a few guards out here, too."

Andra glanced at the oddly-structured castle. "...I thought there was supposed to be a big skull here?" she commented.

"Not for a while, really," said Teela. "Last time I saw this place, it was the day Adam—" she cut herself off, forcing that pang of regret down. No matter how much time passes, it seems one never runs out of regrets.

"I almost didn't recognize you with that blonde hair," said a female voice from outside, prompting Teela to look up in surprise. Standing outside the castle was a young blonde woman dressed in armor similar to what she used to wear, albeit in different colors.

"...Ileena?" Teela blurted.

"You know her?" asked Andra.

Teela swallowed heavily. "Yeah…He-Man and I helped her out a little while back…" she responded.

(Correctamundo, He-Fans! It happened in the classic He-Man episode "A Friend in Need".)

"So, what brings you back home?" Ileena asked.

"I'm on a mission," explained Teela.

"I've got a mission too," replied Ileena. "It's to prevent anyone from coming in here."

"Then I guess our missions contradict each other," Teela responded.

"I don't want to have to fight you, Teela," Ileena insisted. "After all, we used to be friends...and I still care about you!"

Teela sighed. "I don't want to fight you either, but this job we're on is very important," she said. "There's got to be a compromise of some kind."

"Not as far as I know," said Ileena as she took a defensive stance.

Suddenly, Nadira stepped forward and waved her hand before Ileena's eyes, making them gloss over. "You will let us through," she whispered, a hypnotic tone in her voice.

"I will let you through…" murmured Ileena as she stepped aside. Teela glared at Nadira.

"In we go, then," smiled Nadira. Off Teela's glare, she raised an eyebrow. "What? It worked, didn't it?"

"Don't do that again," warned Teela. "Ileena isn't some evil monster."

"And you would've preferred to fight her?" asked Nadira.

"No, but I have strong feelings against mind control," the blonde warrior responded.

"Oh, calm down; it's only temporary," Nadira shrugged as they went inside.

"For your sake, it'd better be," muttered Teela as she followed behind.

Nadira rolled her eyes as she and the others entered Castle Grayskull. Within the center of it all sat the Sorceress. She had aged visibly since the last time anyone had seen her.

In the middle of her hands, she was holding a colorful ember.

As she looked up, she saw Nadira approaching her. "You look old," she remarked. "All this magic...all beautiful, AND all yours...while the rest of us make do with what dregs remain."

"I think it's time you told us what you REALLY want, Evil-Lyn," remarked Teela.

Nadira glanced back at her group, standing behind her, and smirked darkly. "...so you figured it out, then?" she asked.

"Wait, what?!" Stinkor asked, bewildered.

"That's right!" Teela remarked. "Did you really think you could fool me with one of your older disguises?"

[Not a hoax—not a dream, He-Maniacs! Evil-Lyn used this disguise to fool the Twiggets in the classic episode "Evil-Lyn's Plot".]

"Well, I suppose there's no need for charades anymore," Evil-Lyn shrugged as she changed back from Nadira, and transmuted the goblet into the skull of the Havoc Staff.

"The Havoc Staff!" Teela exclaimed.

Evil-Lyn held out the skull, and it glowed brightly as Sorceress's wisp of magic began to shine.

"Gotta stop her…!" Teela said as she took her staff, shifted it to spear mode, and hurled it like a javelin. But before it could make contact, a familiar green-and-yellow tiger caught it out of the air.

"Cringer?!" Teela exclaimed.

"I'm sorry, Teela," said the tiger. "But the time for fighting is over!"

Finally, Evil-Lyn withdrew, and the ball of magic in the Sorceress's hands had doubled in size.

"I made this miserable journey to strengthen your Sorceress with what little magic remained in the Staff," she explained. "Don't say I never did anything for you."

"You're helping us?" Teela was, for lack of a better term to describe it, utterly befuddled. "But why? You've been our enemy for years. So why help the Sorceress regain her strength?"

"Because I asked her to," responded The Sorceress. This left Teela even MORE shocked.

"To save the last ember of true magic left in Eternia." Sorceress continued.

Evil-Lyn held out her wand. "You trust me with this?" she asked.

"I trust our interests are aligned," replied Sorceress. "Should this ember go out, with it will go the last of Eternia's magic. So guard it with your life."

Evil-Lyn complied and put her wand forward. The Sorceress held her hands towards the wand as she closed her eyes.

As the magic was absorbed into the orb, Sorceress's headdress and cloak dissolved, leaving her in a simple white dress and revealing her long white hair.

She collapsed, but Cringer caught her before she could fall.

"Thank you, Cringer," she said; even though she felt weak, she gave a warm smile.

Teela went over and helped the Sorceress back to her feet, but she didn't dare take her eyes off of Evil-Lyn.

"Whether you fought for Grayskull...or for Snake Mountain, it doesn't matter," said Cringer. "We ALL have to join forces...or Eternia DIES!"

"The fearful feline is correct," said Evil-Lyn as she conjured up a projection of Eternia. "Magic birthed Eternia...the first planet in all of creation, the nexus of space and time. And the Sword of Power is what binds that magic to Eternia. But now that the sword is gone, so too goes the magic. Without magic, Eternia will rot and die like so much old fruit. And as goes Eternia...so goes the entire universe."

"So how do we prevent this? The day Adam and Skeletor...vanished, they took the sword with them," inquired Teela.

"The only way to fix Eternia is to call upon Grayskull's power," explained Sorceress. "And to do that, you'll need the Sword."

"Legend has it that the Sword was made up of two ancient blades," continued Evil-Lyn. "One forged in the Hall of Heroes in Valternia, the other forged in Subternia: the realm of the dead."

"When the sword absorbed all the magic from the exploding Orb of Power, it broke into its twin halves and returned to the realms in which they were forged," said Sorceress. "So you must find the 2 halves and use the ember to reforge the Sword of Power."

"If we go to Valternia...we can get Adam back," said Cringer.

"So we're going to Heaven and Hell, huh?" asked Andra. "Sounds scary...but also exciting!"

Teela raised a brow. "You're saying…we'll be able to get Adam back?" she asked.

The Sorceress nodded. "Indeed," she replied. " With the retrieval of the blades...we may be able to revive our friend."

For the first time in a long time, Teela felt something she thought was long gone—hope. There was a chance to resurrect her best friend...to redeem herself...to fix her mistakes from all those months ago and get Adam back!

Her smile turned firm as she stood up. "If we're going to take on a quest like this, we're going to need help," she said.

"Indeed," replied Evil-Lyn. "We'll need to find the one you call... Man-at-Arms."

(END OF EPISODE 2.)

Hope that was a good refresher course. 2 things my cowriters and I wanted to fix were referencing other versions of the MOTU franchise—although broad strokes of Filmation, not a straight 1-to-1 of that—and another was to not have Teela be a whiny, petulant little brat.

Personally, I'd like to think we succeeded in that regard, y'know?